private TELL ME ONCE AGAIN // meadowfur

[CRAGPELT]

Cragpelt struts along the riverbank, enjoying every single bit of his newfound freedom as a fresh warrior. His snow-dipped tail flicks with the confidence of a cat who knows (or, thinks) he looks cool. The river gurgles beside him, still freezing cold but bursting with newleaf life. Honestly, he can relate to it. Once so tense and stressed, now he is able to relax, like ice melting into fluid, warm water. No more training. No more waiting. Just Cragpelt, RiverClan warrior, doing very important border patrol things.

When a fresh scent meets his parted jaws, he slows, ears pricking as his mismatched gaze scans the opposite shore. Movement, then a flash of golden fur. The tricolored tom stops short, eyes widening for just a second before he schools his expression into something way more composed. Meadowpaw. It's been moons since he last saw her. She looks…different, but the same. She's grown up. I have, too. Is she still the confident, bubbly thing he remembers, he wonders? He remembers thinking she was…actually pretty cool, for a ThunderClanner. Really pretty, too. Not that he'd ever admit that. He's a warrior now. He's got standards.

Still, his paws move before he really thinks about it, carrying him to the water's edge. He tilts his head, smirking just slightly. "Well, well, if it isn't Meadowpaw!" He flicks his tail toward the border, raising a brow. "You're not lost, are you? Because I'd love to be the one to escort you back - purely out of the goodness of my heart, of course. I can never leave a damsel in distress." Oh, stars, was that flirting that left his maw? Okay, fine, maybe it was. But it's not like I'd actually see anything in a ThunderClanner! He isn't his mother!

// @Meadowfur
​

 

[Meadowfur]

Meadowfur halted at the river's edge, ears twitching as the voice drifted across the water—familiar, cocky, unmistakably him. Her eyes snapped toward the opposite bank, locking onto a tall, broad-shouldered tom strutting toward the water with that same ridiculous self-assuredness he'd always carried.

Cragpaw, she thought at first—except he didn't move like an apprentice anymore. His gait was more fluid, his posture confident in a way that hadn't quite settled into him when they were younger. Her gaze narrowed just slightly. Had he earned his name finally?

Still, she didn't let him see her surprise. Instead, she arched a brow at his ridiculous comment.

"Lost?" she echoed, her voice flat but tinged with dry amusement. "You're lucky I'm in a good mood, or I'd assume you were calling me mouse-brained." She flicked her tail, posture relaxed but alert, like she hadn't just spent the better part of her patrol trying not to glance across this very border in case she caught sight of him.

Her green eyes scanned him again, slower this time, catching the snow-tipped tail flick, the way he smirked like he had the whole forest under his paw. There was something frustratingly charming about it. Annoying, sure—but not unpleasant.

You're walking like you've got a warrior name now," she said, more curiously this time, tilting her head slightly. "Or are you just putting on a show for my benefit?" His joke about a damsel in distress earned him a scoff, though the corner of her mouth twitched despite herself. "Please," she muttered, "I don't need much rescuing these days, least of all from a RiverClanner." But there was a spark of warmth beneath the words, half-challenging, half-playful.

She hesitated for a moment, then added pointedly, "It's Meadowfur now, by the way. You're a little behind on ThunderClan gossip." She held her gaze on him, gauging his reaction, waiting for some half-baked quip or smug grin. Part of her hoped he'd try. Stars, part of her wanted him to.

She didn't move away—not yet. Her paws stayed planted, her posture easy but her eyes sharp. "So? Are you going to tell me what they're calling you these days, or do I have to keep calling you Cragpaw while you strut around like you own the whole river?" She let the teasing hang there, expression unreadable—cool on the surface, but her ears were warm, and her tail flicked once more, betraying the flicker of interest she hadn't quite buried.

( ❀༉ ) there's love in the lightning ₊˚༉‧₊˚

• 
  
  
• 
  MEADOWFUR THUNDERCLAN WARRIOR ; SHE / HER
  LIGHTSTRIKE X MOONWHISPER SISTER TO SCARLETDUST & MOTTLEDMOON ; MENTORED BY PALEFIRE
  

  A large fluffy red tabby with a white chest, stomach, tail, muzzle and stripe running along her back. Her eyes are a deep, forest, green and in her pelt one can usually find flowers woven

  ✦ easy in battle + no formal training